Wisconsin needs more kids to take computer science. Can a Microsoft program help make that happen?

Students in an AP Computer Science A class at Hortonville High School work on a problem as a team as they review for their exam in early May. From left: Archer Lorenz, John Wirth, Jake Krause and Grace Vanden Heuvel.(Photo: David D. Haynes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Grace Vanden Heuvel takes math courses online just for fun. She also likes to play music, especially percussion — “anything I can hit, bang or make noise out of.” She's even written a few of her own compositions.

But at age 15, she has one other important distinction. She did something many other students in Wisconsin won’t get a chance to do: She completed AP Computer Science.

The Hortonville High School freshman (now a rising sophomore) could do that because of a program that pairs tech professionals with classroom teachers. Hortonville High just finished its second year with TEALS — or Technology Education and Literacy in Schools. It's one of 34 Wisconsin schools that have embraced the program, which was created by the philanthropic arm of the tech giant Microsoft.

TEALS is one of Microsoft’s answers to a serious shortage of computer science professionals in the U.S. By 2020, the nation will only have about a third as many computer science grads as it needs, according to projections. There are more than 6,500 open computing-related jobs in Wisconsin alone, according to Code.org, which advocates for more computer science training.

There is also a massive diversity gap. The industry is 80% male and heavily white, according to statistics compiled by Data USA.

Highly skilled tech workers are the grease that makes the gears of technological innovation work. Without enough smart computer science workers, Wisconsin — indeed, the U.S. — may miss out on the next big thing. Somebody has to figure out the code that drives the next generation of phones, cars or televisions. Or the device that no one knew we needed until we did.

But it’s also a matter of finding enough people to teach the next generation of students. In Wisconsin, 17 teachers completed a state prep program in computer science over the past five years, according to the state Department of Public Instruction. Overall, 50 people received regular computer science licenses over that time and another 46 got emergency licenses or permits to teach the subject.

Those relatively small numbers mean some students aren't getting the chance to see if computer science is for them.

The goal of the 10-year-old TEALS program is twofold: teach more students but also train more teachers. The idea is to have teachers work side by side in their classrooms with a tech professional for two years to help them get ready to take over instruction, said Kate Behncken, general manager of Microsoft Philanthropies. Depending on the situation, volunteer support can last longer than that.

“Over time, the teacher will skill up and eventually become the computer science teacher in that high school,” she said.

Teacher — and student — at the same time

In Hortonville, Scott Brielmaier, who has taught at the high school for 27 years, has embraced the role of being simultaneously teacher and student. He and fellow instructor Jodie Schmitt have been assisted by three volunteer professionals — Erin Draheim, a software engineer with Skyline Technologies, Mike Schmitt from Plexus Corp. and Steven Gimenez from Thrivent Financial.

During a recent class, students were reviewing for the AP exam by playing a computer science version of “Jeopardy.” With the theme music filling the room, they worked in teams, sussing out problems at the whiteboard and brainstorming with each other to answer questions.

Scott Brielmaier has taught in the Hortonville schools for 27 years. He team taught a computer science class the last two years along side professionals from the community. It's part of a program called TEALS sponsored by Microsoft Philanthropies, which was in 34 Wisconsin schools in the 2018-2019 school year.(Photo: David D. Haynes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Last year, the first year TEALS was in the school, “I was learning right along with the kids,” Brielmaier said. He knew older computer programming languages such as BASIC and Pascal but very little about Java, the focus of the class. The volunteers did far more of the actual instruction.

“This year, I’m doing more of the teaching, probably about 80 percent of the teaching,” he said. “They are still there as a backup.”

Team teaching can be tricky to master, said Aleata Hubbard, a research associate at WestEd, which is based in San Francisco. She has observed TEALS classrooms as part of an ongoing research project.

"Sometimes the volunteers sort of bring their own show, not checking in often enough with teachers. We saw that the teams that were doing better met regularly," she said. "And also the ones that had clear roles about who was doing what on the team. That made a world of difference."

Overall, Hubbard said, "having volunteers in the classroom is really good because it brings experience with computer science that teachers don't have or aren't going to get quickly."

Erin Draheim is a senior software engineer at Skyline Technologies and a volunteer instructor in computer science in Hortonville High School's TEALS program, which is sponsored by Microsoft Philanthropies.(Photo: Erin Draheim)

Draheim, who was Brielmaier’s student when she was in high school at Hortonville, has spent 20 years as a software developer with Schneider National, School Specialty and now Skyline.

Draheim enjoys seeing the "aha" moments when students figure out that computer science isn't so scary after all. And she especially wants more girls to give computer science a try. If they do try and don’t have a taste for it, fine.

“But if the answer is, ‘I’ve never tried it, and I’m afraid of it,’ then that’s what I want to change.”

TEALS volunteers, who are unpaid, receive about 40 hours of training before they enter the classroom. The curricula students use are adapted by TEALS based on courses at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Washington.

The power of a female role model

Grace Vanden Heuvel, 15, just finished her freshman year at Hortonville High School. She was a student in the school's AP Computer Science A class, which was team taught by a classroom teacher and professionals from the community.(Photo: David D. Haynes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Grace Vanden Heuvel can envision herself in a tech job someday, and Draheim’s presence in the class made that vision clearer.

“Seeing Erin come in, it is that little glimmer of hope that I won’t be the only one doing this. It’s kind of a big deal to not be the only one,” she said. “Having somebody who relates to you is really important because it gives you a sense of confidence in yourself.”

Sam Schiedermayer, who just graduated from Hortonville High School, will attend the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the fall to study computer science and computer engineering.(Photo: David D. Haynes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Sam Schiedermayer, a senior who will attend the University of Wisconsin-Madison to study computer science and computer engineering, also found the exposure to professionals helpful.

He got interested in programming in fifth grade after watching his older brother create computer games. He learned to program Lego robots in middle school and then joined the high school robotics team. Last summer, he worked for a local company that designed an Android event app for the EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh. He got to write some of the code.

“Honestly, it was fantastic because Steve Gimenez, he works with Java every day at his job so he had a really good idea of how you actually use it in industry and knew a lot of the ins and outs of the language,” Schiedermayer said.

What's the bottom line on TEALS?

Is TEALS effective?

On student achievement, it's a difficult question to answer because there are no good standardized measures of what students are learning, said Yvonne Kao, a senior research associate at WestEd who has worked with Hubbard to examine how computer science is being taught. The two AP computer science exams are one measure but they have some limitations, including the fact that not all students take them.

"That's a question people are asking about every CS program out there," she said. "I feel like it's a question the field is dying to answer but we're not really in a place where we can answer it. ... It's really hard to compare from one classroom to another, one program to another.

"Are programs like TEALS increasing access to computer science? Are we closing the equity gap? I think those are much more straight-forward questions, and I feel reasonably confident in saying that TEALS is making a dent in the access issue," Kao said. "But that achievement question is a tough one for the field right now."

Microsoft Philanthropies says TEALS students do better than the national average on the AP exams and are more likely to pursue a career in computer science. Two studies of TEALS, both funded by Microsoft, are underway; results are expected later this year or early next.

Hortonville schools are sold on the program and on the general idea of exposing more kids to computer science. Administrators have pushed computer science down to the fifth grade, using curriculum developed by Code.org, and they have gotten more girls involved through Microsoft’s DigiGirlz program and Girls Who Code, a nonprofit that aims to boost the number of women in computer science. The high school will offer a second computer science class next year.

“You can learn from a textbook but I think we’ve all been around schools long enough to know that a textbook can teach you one way but the way businesses do it is sometimes very different,” said Hortonville High Principal Thomas Ellenbecker.

In Milwaukee, Chris Her-Xiong, the principal and executive director of the Hmong American Peace Academy, an independent charter school within Milwaukee Public Schools, was similarly enthusiastic.

The school worked with TEALS for the first time in the 2018-2019 school year after students started asking for computer science instruction, she said. Twenty-nine students took the two classes that were offered; enrollment is expected to double next school year, she said. More than 90% of students at the academy are low-income — many are first-generation Americans.

Continued volunteer support will be valuable, Her-Xiong said.

"That's a non-negotiable item for me because it brings in the community to our school," she said. "It's more than just teaching content, it's also about building a relationship, a network, and expanding the horizons of our young people."

Scott Brielmaier (right) teaches computer science at Hortonville High School, assisted by Erin Draheim (in back), a software engineer who lives in the community. The class is part of an effort sponsored by Microsoft called TEALS that aims to get more students taking computer science and more teachers up to speed to teach it.(Photo: David D. Haynes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

So you've taken computer science? What now?

But if one goal for Wisconsin communities is to keep more young people like Grace Vanden Heuvel and Sam Schiedermayer in the state after they’ve gotten a taste of computer science, what else needs to happen?

TechSpark, the Microsoft arm focused on economic development, is hoping to open more doors at area companies. Secura Insurance, for example, is developing apprenticeships specifically for Hortonville’s TEALS students, said Michelle Schuler, community engagement manager for TechSpark Wisconsin.

But right now, there are not enough youth apprenticeships for computer science and IT students in Wisconsin, she said.

“These kids are capable of doing what (businesses) want,” Ellenbecker said. “Hopefully through these youth apprenticeships, businesses keep a connection with the kids, and when there’s a connection made, it’s harder for these kids to look elsewhere.”

Grace Vanden Heuvel put it this way:

“What’s so handy about having those professionals there, is you can see what industry is looking at and what they are doing so you can try and mimic that. It also gives you an opportunity to possibly get an internship or job in the future.”

Note to Wisconsin companies: Grace's résumé — and Sam’s — are available upon request.

David D. Haynes is editor of the Ideas Lab. He reports on innovation in business and government and on government transparency. Email: david.haynes@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DavidDHaynes or Facebook.

Teals at a glance

• TEALS, a project of Microsoft Philanthropies, was founded in 2009 by former high school computer science teacher and software engineer Kevin Wang. It helps schools teach computer science by pairing professionals with classroom teachers.

• TEALS has reached 53,000 students since the program began.

• In the current school year, one in five students were in rural areas, and underrepresented minorities and girls accounted for one in three students.

• TEALS was in 34 Wisconsin schools in the latest academic year. It is in 27 states plus the District of Columbia and British Columbia.

• Nationwide, TEALS worked with 675 companies during the latest school year.

• The average salary for a computing occupation in Wisconsin is nearly $76,000, according to Code.org. In 2017, Wisconsin had 1,190 computer science graduates; only 17% were women, the organization reports.

• In addition to Grace Vanden Heuvel, these students took AP Computer Science A at Hortonville High during the term that just ended: Andi Bryant, Morgan Draheim, Austin Horneck, Nicholas Ives, Jaice Jahnke, Jake Krause, Archer Lorenz, Caitlin Niemann and John Wirth.

Sources: Microsoft Philanthropies, Code.org, Hortonville High School

How I reported this story

I first heard about TEALS late last year and wondered if it might be one answer to a burgeoning demand for computer science expertise in Wisconsin. To get an overview of the program, I spoke first with Kate Behncken, general manager of Microsoft Philanthropies, and Microsoft spokesman Jason Kravitz. In May, I visited Hortonville High School, and while there interviewed students Sam Schiedermayer and Grace Vanden Heuvel, teachers Scott Brielmaier and Jodie Schmitt and volunteer Erin Draheim. I also spoke at length that day with Michelle Schuler, community engagement manager for TechSpark Wisconsin, and school principal Tom Ellenbecker. Later, I interviewed Hmong American Peace Academy executive director Chris Her-Xiong and researchers Yvonne Kao and Aleata Hubbard of WestEd, a San Francisco-based research organization. I also read a report Hubbard and a colleague published in 2018 on their research. I requested and received some data on teacher licensing from the state Department of Public Instruction, and read a report on computer science education in Wisconsin from Code.org.